A common treatment for circulatory disorders such as lymphedema, edema and venous diseases is to wear a compression garment. Current compression garments are available in various ready-to-wear standard sizes. Unfortunately, a wide array of inventory must be kept on hand when distributing ready-to-wear garments in order to accommodate the population majority. Although compression garments have been designed that can be modified in circumference or length to obtain a better fit, the “nearest” size must still be chosen.
Alternatively, custom made-to-measure garments have also been produced as a form of treatment. Unfortunately, measuring, sizing, and ordering these made-to-measure garments is time consuming and may still not result in a properly fitted compression garment. For limbs that are outside of the standard ready-to-wear size range, custom garments need to be built to match the curvature, length and circumference of the limb. As a result, many measurements are needed to make these custom garments and there is a period between measuring, ordering, production and fitting of the garment where the limb profile may change, which can result in an improper fit due to the time it takes for the patient to receive their garment.
Various compression garments have tried trimming-to-fit methods where longer bands are cut down from the largest size to fit the patient. Unfortunately, these bands need to be trimmed separately or in pairs and angled in a manner that best conforms to the shape of the limb. This is a slow and time consuming process. Working out the correct lengths and angles of each band can be very difficult, and is often made more difficult due to the fact that the bands need to overlap to obtain complete coverage.
Other compression modalities such as bandaging have also been used. An advantage of bandaging is that it can be used on 100% of the population with one inventory set. Unfortunately, bandaging is very time consuming and does not have the benefit of quick and easy application as compared to standard compression garments. In addition, bandaging is not guaranteed to provide reliable/consistent compression levels, and cannot be adjusted as the limb shape and compression needs change.
Furthermore, although “fixed bands” compression garments can be modified in circumference from one direction to fit most users, the garment can still only be modified from one direction and the angle of the bands can not be adjusted. As a result, the garment cannot sufficiently contour to limbs that feature large changes in circumference. For limbs out of the standard ready to wear size range, custom garments can be built to match the curvature of the limb. Unfortunately, many measurements are needed to make these garments and there is a period between production and fitting of the garment where the limb profile may change. This can result in an improper fit and the patient has to wait to receive their garment.
What is instead desired is a one-size-fits-all compression garment that can be easily and quickly tailored to match the patient's limb length and circumference profile.